


Be There When I Wake

by nanaprincess91



Category: Super Mario & Related Fandoms, Super Mario Bros. (Video Games)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Romance, light cussing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-15 07:15:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29680356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nanaprincess91/pseuds/nanaprincess91
Summary: “This is about those nightmares, isn’t it?”Peach looked away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”Peach has always been a cheerful sort, but the start of an onslaught of nightmares starts taking the toll on the princess and someone must step in before it gets worse.
Relationships: Mario/Peach-hime | Peach Toadstool, Peach-hime | Peach Toadstool & Kinopiko | Toadette, Princess Daisy & Peach-hime | Peach Toadstool
Comments: 5
Kudos: 24





	1. The Nightmares Begin

**Author's Note:**

> I was originally going to post this as one long one-shot but I figured this may be better split into three chapters. Definitely pulled some headcanons from SolareSuper's The Legend Begins fic (Give it a read if you haven't): https://archiveofourown.org/works/26517430/chapters/64631101
> 
> I hope you all like the story!

_Peach regretted her challenge. Bowser had lost every battle head-on with Mario and Peach was a royal, the biggest creature of tradition that existed— And why would this tradition be one that would break?_

_But as the Koopa King landed his second punch, Peach could feel a stone in the pit of her stomach. That star wand he had lifted earlier had not been just a prop; it had been a real weapon, one that had made their enemy nearly indestructible even to Mario’s usually powerful kicks._

_Mario still looked determined, even with a slowly blackening eye and heavy breaths. He wasn't giving up; he never did._

_“Good night!” Bowser yelled._

_And then the room glowed with firelight, the shattered glass on the floor reflecting bright orange and yellow embers._

_Peach opened her mouth to scream, raising her arms to protect herself; heat encompassed her, burning her, illuminating everything in a light that stung Peach’s closed eyes. And then it stopped. She was alive? Peach lowered her arms and let out a strangled gasp. Mario stood in front of her, arms outstretched, burns on his skin, clothes smouldering. She could make out a tiny flame burning on the tip of his moustache. He looked back at her for a second, taking in her appearance with a look of shock and relief, before he stumbled on his feet and collapsed. He did not get back up._

_Peach dropped to her knees beside him. She wanted to shake him as she called his name, begged him to wake up, but she was scared of touching him. She had never seen so many injuries on him. Peach barely registered Bowser’s ramblings as she whispered Mario’s name. Her cheeks, still hot from the flame attack, cooled with the tears that slowly rolled down her face. She had to have a green mushroom, a red one, a potion, anything. Anything at all._

_“I guess I might as well get rid of Mario. He’s no good to anyone now, that’s for sure.”_

_Peach raised her eyes in horror at Bowser, now just staring in her direction._

Do something, _Peach thought to herself._ Do anything _. But she stayed frozen in place, watching as the koopa king lifted the star rod. There was a loud flash of lightning, a booming noise that nearly blew her eardrums out. And an unconscious Mario flew out the window of the floating castle, far below._

Peach sat up, panting heavily and shaking. She raised her arm to defend against Bowser’s hand reaching for her as she sat among a blanket of crystal shards, but her arm remained free. Instead of being at Bowser's mercy, she was nestled in soft sheets with the sound of crickets coming through the window. Or it would have been soft if she hadn’t been drenched in sweat. She was safe in her castle bedroom. No kidnapping plot (Today, she told herself). No danger. Just an early start because of a nightmare.

It had been nothing but a nightmare, she knew, even as she wrapped her arms around her legs, trying to calm her breathing. That attack on her castle had been one of the worst. Not because of her castle’s sudden ability to fly or Bowser’s magical wand, but because of Mario’s descent. Usually, Peach would have never doubted Mario’s ability to protect himself. He had a knack for surviving even the most precarious situations. But that time—that time, Peach’s hope had been a pinprick of light in a sky of overwhelming darkness. A plea that she wasn’t even sure she believed. She hadn’t known Mario had survived until she overheard Bowser receive his first report about her pesky plumber defeating the Goomba King. It was only later that his survival had been a miraculous one due to the star spirits.

 _It’s okay,_ she told herself.

Her breathing slowed to a more normal pace, although her heart still beat wildly beneath her nightgown. She glanced at the clock: 2:13 in the morning, only 3 hours after she had gone to bed. She didn’t have to be up for nearly another 5 hours. She lifted her hair to let the back of her neck cool down, twisting it to the side to get comfortable again, before falling back among the pillows.

Her eyes closed again, slowly being pulled back into the dream world.

_Mario’s eyes meeting her own as the flames receded before they closed and he fell forward._

Peach threw her covers off, shaking and headed towards the shower. An early start never killed anyone. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Princess, you’re awake.”

Peach looked up from a cup of coffee cradled between her fingers, sitting on the kitchen counter. Beside her, two cakes sat on cooling racks while in the oven below, another cake baked, golden brown, the smell of vanilla in the air. 

“Toadsworth,” Peach said with a small nod. “Good morning.”

The older toad looked at the cakes and then back at the young woman. “Are you alright?”

Peach nodded again, sliding off the counter and grabbing her oven mitts. “Oh yes, quite alright. It was just one of those early mornings.” The oven released a puff of sweet air when she opened it.

_Yes, that’s ready, alright._

Toadsworth hummed. “Your mother would rearrange the flower arrangements by size when she slept badly.”

Peach paused, the small fact about her mother burying itself in her heart. A little similarity between them she hadn’t known. Toadsworth may not be her advisor anymore, but he had always been observant. She pushed the cake to the cooling rack and switched the oven off before turning to face Toadsworth.

“It was nothing, but a short nightmare, Toadsworth.” A small smile. “Nothing to worry about.”

That seemed to satisfy the toad and he nodded. “Well, we do have a long day ahead of us.” He paused at the door, eyeing a batch of cookies Peach had finished an hour earlier. “May-”

Peach motioned for him to proceed with a smile. He grabbed one with a happy chuckle and walked out the kitchen. Peach turned back to the cakes, reaching for her coffee again. 

“Yes,” she told herself, yawning and rubbing sleep out of her eyes. “A long day.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_His hand was clammy. Mario’s hands had always been warm, not damp with sweat like they were now. His skin was a sickly shade of green and he groaned in pain, softly, almost like a sigh._

_Peach didn’t let go, stroking his hand; a cold towel sat on her hero’s forehead, an attempt to slow the fever. Bean fever. It wasn’t fatal. Not technically._ _But Peach couldn’t stand the thought of seeing Mario change forever. Sure, she’d still love him for his heart, but she’d miss those blue eyes, the twitch of his moustache hiding a smile. Would his laugh stay the same?_

_Besides, could they be sure this wouldn’t hurt him? Every creature was different, and seeing Mario’s discomfort in his unconscious rest, Peach couldn’t help but worry. Could the bean-bean doctors be wrong? What if it wasn’t just a transformation illness, but something worse?_

_She murmured a prayer to the stars to aid Luigi in his search for the cure._

_“Just hold on,” Peach whispered. “Help is coming.”_

_She could hear his breathing, interspaced with shudders from his chills. When she placed a hand on his chest, she could feel the beating of his heart. His pallor turned even more of that deathly green. Peach felt her heart at her throat, but she started humming a lullaby, hoping that even in his sleep, Mario would focus on her voice. As she sang, she grabbed the towel and dipped it back into cold water, returning it to his forehead._

_His shudders had stopped. Why did his breath suddenly seem quieter? Weaker? And when her hand pressed to his chest again, there was nothing-_

Peach snatched her hand back so quickly, the thump against her own chest jarred her.

 _Not again,_ Peach thought to herself, not bothering to wipe the tears. Instead, she buried her face in the pillow, letting the material soak up the tears.

Peach had gone to bed later that night, beyond what she usually stayed up, trying to avoid the bad thoughts. She had taken her tea as late as possible, using one famous for its sweet dreams, adding a star bit left over from Rosalina’s last visit. And then a warm glass of milk with chocolate biscuits. The combination had lulled her into a wonderful feeling of relaxation, prepared for a restful night of sleep after the previous night’s awful visions. After staying up until nearly one in the morning, she had been ready to crash. Peach had not planned to have a repeat of the night before. 

But it had happened again. Another nightmare, taking her memories and twisting them to a worst case scenario once more. Bean-bean fever was, to everyone’s knowledge, nothing more than a transformative disease- uncomfortable, unwanted, naturally, but not the deadly killer her mind had convinced her it would be in the moments before she had awoken. And even if it had been deadly, Luigi had returned with the cure right on time, stopping his brother’s illness. 

So why was she dreaming of it again? 

Peach closed her eyes, but she could feel the absence of a heartbeat beneath Mario’s shirt. Skin that would slowly turn cold.

Peach rubbed her hands into her eyes before turning back to look at the clock. 3:22AM. She rolled over once, laying an arm over her forehead. The stars were being cruel now. Too cruel. She sighed, already feeling the claws of awakening in her, fending sleep and its nightmares away, before she finally slid off the bed and reached for her robe.

Peach thought she had spotted blueberries in one of the royal pantries. Maybe she’d make muffins this morning. She gave one last glare at her traitorous bed before tiptoeing out of her room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The final muffin teetered dangerously at the edge of its perch, but a quick push by Peach's finger stabilized it once more. She sprinkled powdered sugar over the baked goods before stepping back. A three tiered structure of blueberry muffins, steaming and welcoming, sat on the rolling cart used for transporting her famous cakes room to room.

"Muffins today?"

Peach hummed, wiping sugar on her apron, before addressing Toadette. "Just a handful."

Toadette looked up at the muffins, head tilted and mouth in an uncertain pucker. "I think your handful could feed the New Year Planning Committee."

"Do you suppose they would like some?" Peach asked, resisting a yawn.

But Toadette noticed. Of course she had. She waddled over to Peach, guiding her to a chair. 

"I can ask them next month when they meet."

Peach's cheeks flushed, suddenly remembering they were still weeks before those preparations began. Usually she was so good at remembering dates.

"Yes, of course."

"Peach,” Toadette said slowly, getting in front of her friend and taking her manicured hands in her little ones. “Look at me.”

Peach met her eyes, apprehensively, biting the inside of her lip.

“I’m saying this as a friend,” Toadette prefaced, “You look exhausted.”

Peach squeezed Toadette’s hand warmly and then took her hands back, fidgeting with her apron. “And as an advisor?”

Toadette frowned. “Well as an advisor, I’d say there are better ways to pass the time than making muffins in the morning. Namely, sleeping.”

“An advisor wouldn’t tell me to sleep,” Peach countered, with a smile.

“A good advisor would.” Toadette crossed her hands, looking at Peach again. “So why don’t you go take a nap for an hour. I can handle the meeting.”

“No!” Peach said quickly, louder than she meant to as well. Toadette had jumped with the surprise. Peach quickly lowered her voice. “No, I don’t need sleep. I’m awake. The meeting is an important one.”

“Toadsworth mentioned you had a nightmare yesterday morning.”

Peach should have known Toadsworth would tell Toadette, a gentle reminder that her parents’ advisor was still looking out for her.

“Yes,” she said, “Just a small one.”

“What about the one last night?”

The charade was up. Peach’s shoulders sagged a little and she gave Toadette a tired half-smile.

Toadette returned the smile, going over and reaching for a muffin towards the bottom. The whole tiered structure wobbled ominously and Peach stood up to stop it, a movement Toadette stopped by letting go of the muffin.

“Good structure,” Toadette said with a laugh and a smirk, grabbing a stepping stool to finally reach the muffin at the top. She leapt back down and handed it to Peach. “So the one last night.”

“I’ve just had a couple of nightmares about Mario getting hurt,” Peach said, biting into the muffin. It was warm and she found herself curling inward towards the heat. “It’s nothing new.”

Toadette nodded. “He does get into buckets of trouble sometimes.”

 _Because of trying to save me,_ Peach thought, taking another small bite of her muffin.

“Just promise you’ll take it easy today. Sure I can’t take the meeting for you?” Toadette asked.

Peach smiled again. “No, I have this. But I’ll take it slow and I know I’ll get a good night’s rest tonight.” She pointed to a scroll hanging out of Toadette’s bag. “So, let’s check those emergency supplies.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Peach would have hoped that her mind would have run out of nightmare fuel after a couple of nights, but it seemed her endless captures provided a deep well for her mind to conjure up worst case scenarios. Her sleep hours became more irregular. She found ways to pass the time during the new hours she had: she’d arrange flowers like her mother used to do, bake, cook, iron her clothes.

She was sure the staff at the castle were getting tired of finding all their errands already done, although she thought she had caught a few of them doing over her arrangements. She couldn’t understand why.

Peach threw herself into her ruling duties as well. She devised four different defense plans for the castle, two new festivals that could be held, and invitations for emerging kingdoms’ rulers; the more allies, the better. The work never ended. She made sure it didn’t, finding a new task as soon as the last was finished. It was exhausting.

But the nights were worse. She couldn't close her eyes without seeing some unfortunate event exaggerated, some lost battle.on replay. So if it meant she was constantly working, then that was alright. Better that than sleeping.

Peach spent hours in front of the mirror, covering up dark circles under her eyes and her parlor that seemed to grow with every day. She played the royal part with an unwavering smile though. She was Princess Peach, ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, daughter of King Gustav and Queen Amanita. She couldn't show this weakness of her own making, not when there were things to do. She had a kingdom to run.


	2. A Call for Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toadette asks for help to address Peach's worsening condition, but things don't go as planned.

_ Dear Daisy, _

_ How is Sarasaland faring? Not too many sandstorms now, are there? _

_ I know it’s unusual to hear from me instead of Peach- _

The sound of a crash echoed in the hallways and Toadette looked towards the large closed door.

“Princess,” she heard one of the castle maids say with surprise. “Let me handle those. You shouldn’t worry yourself with those.”

“Nonsense,” Peach said in a wary voice. “I have it-Oh!”

There was a loud clatter and the ongoing sound of something round and metallic wobbling with the impact of a fall. Toadette cringed at the clamor. 

“I have it,” Peach repeated as another clang sounded. “Nothing but a slip of the foot.”

“Princess-” the maid said, clearly exasperated.

“It’s all peachy.”

Once more, the sound of metal banged around before the voices continued down the hall, moving away from the room. Toadette listened intently for a few seconds more. Once it was quiet, she sighed, looking back to her letter.. Where had she been?

_ -from me instead of Peach, but I need your help.  _

_ Peach is a mess and has been for nearly a week. I don’t think she’s sleeping well and frankly, she’s starting to do some damage. She’s managed to bake enough for all the townspeople already and has designed four new festivals. One is the Festival Planning Festival. Yeah. That bad. Everyone in the castle is on edge since she keeps doing everyone’s work and then they have to redo it.  _

_ I’m worried about her. Remember when she came back after Bowser’s sham wedding on the moon? Take that level of frustration she had and change it to sadness. _

_ It’s THAT bad. _

_ She’s having nightmares. I’ve tried talking to her about them, but she just refuses. She gives that smile, you know? That one where you can tell she’s faking it. I caught her screaming in her sleep one night. Three guesses who they involve. She’s worried sick about him , but she won’t even admit something is wrong. I’m afraid she’ll stop sleeping soon altogether and she’s already exhausted. If she keeps this up, she’ll really get sick. I’d make her take a week off to just rest, but the kingdom is in full swing preparing for the next meeting of kingdom leaders so no one will agree to that, least of all Peach.  _

_ The Mushroom Kingdom needs you. Alright, that was a little dramatic. But Peach needs you. _

_ Write back soon, _

_ Toadette. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tonight was the night. Day six would be the day. Peach was ready: tea, a cuddly teddy bear, a fourth of a chocolate cupcake with its own dollop of frosting on top, and her music box playing softly. This time- this time, she’d be able to sleep well. She had to believe it. She wished on a star for a dreamless sleep and closed her eyes.

The peace didn’t last. No sooner had she closed her eyes, pulled into dreamworld, that she found herself trapped in Count Bleck’s magical cage, remembering the way Mario was tossed around by the dark blocks of magic.

Peach pressed a palm to her forehead, opening her eyes only to stare accusingly at the stars out her balcony’s window.

“Won’t you give me one night’s rest?” she pleaded.

But Peach was already slipping on her robe, not even registering the hour as she headed back down to the library.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“-ch? Peach? Peach!”

Peach blinked away dark spots and found Toadette’s face coming into focus. Her beady eyes were filled with worry and she held a small hand to Peach’s cheek.

“To-Toadette?” Peach said in a wavering voice.

“You’re alright.” her advisor replied before frowning. “I was worried! You’ve been staring at that page for 10 minutes..”

Peach cleared her throat, trying to ignore the pounding in her head. She brought herself up to a more dignified sitting position and smoothed out her robe. “And how would you know? Have you been spying?” Peach asked, raising her chin slightly. It was more defiant than she liked to be, but she also found she had little energy to stop herself.

Toadette just met her gaze with a deadpan look. “No need to spy. You didn’t react to the clock ringing or the fact that I nearly dropped a plate.”

Peach shuffled uncomfortably in her seat. “Oh, well, I was just reading. I get quite transfixed in my studies, Toadette. You know that.”

“Well you think you’d have noticed your friend, Peachy Keen.”

Peach turned her head to the left where a beautiful brunette stood, arms crossed over an orange dress. Her lips were pursed in slight anger, but the worry in her eyes betrayed her.

“Daisy,” Peach said, rising to her feet. “When did you get here? I wasn’t told you’d be arriving.”

She moved forward, swaying in place before managing to stop herself and wrapping her arms around her friend.

Daisy returned the hug tightly, “I got here this morning. I had to come see you.” 

Daisy pulled away to look at Peach, scrutinizing every detail of Peach’s face. She prodded at Peach’s cheeks and pulled at her hair gently until Peach gently swatted her hand away.

“You really do look terrible.”

Peach’s face fell. “Well, that was quite rude…”

“You do, Peach,” Daisy said, leading her back to the chair. 

Peach flopped down into and tugged at a strand of her hair.

“Yes, well you look,” she looked over Daisy. 

Orange dress pressed, the designs at the bottom had a bit of mud on them, but that was standard for Daisy, and it made the dress her own. Daisy looked worried, but refreshed.

Peach pouted and Daisy hid a snicker of laughter behind the back of her hand. 

“Can’t say a mean thing, can you?”

Peach looked up Daisy, scrunching her nose. “I could if I wanted to. I’m just tired because I stayed up reading my book. Couldn’t put it down.”

Toadette pulled the book from Peach’s hand and placed it on a table. “You’ve read this before.”

“It’s a comforting story.”

“Oh yeah? What part were you on?” 

Peach opened her mouth to answer. No words came out. Which book had she been reading again? She glanced down at the book in Toadette’s hands, but Daisy grabbed it and hid it behind her back.

“Trying to cheat now?” Daisy threw the book towards an end table where it knocked down a pile of novels, scattering them.

“Daisy!”

“Sorry!”

In any other situation, the three of them probably would have burst out laughing, but none of them laughed. Instead, Toadette frowned. 

“This is about those nightmares, isn’t it?”

Peach looked away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Daisy stepped forward. “Bullshit, Peach Pit-”

“Don’t call me that,” Peach said, bristling.

“You could carry a Christmas pie in each bag under your eye.”

“Well aren’t you just a bottle of starshine today.” 

Daisy’s cheeks burned red.

This had gone on long enough. Peach stood up, making a show of stretching. “I should really get ready for the day.”

“Were they about Mario again?” Toadette asked more softly, her hand holding Daisy’s arm.

_ Mario lay unmoving against the tile floor, unconscious. “This man deserves ridicule….Weaklings cannot face Count Bleck.” _

“It was, wasn’t it?”

Peach hadn’t realized she had stopped moving, staring at the ground, as if her mustached hero lay there. She cleared her throat, starting to feel shame at how she had acted just a second earlier. There was no use in denying it. “I-It’s nothing. They’re merely bad dreams.”

“You should talk to him.”

Peach turned to face both her friends, feeling a chill down her spine. “No,” Peach said, firmly.

“It’s not healthy. Princess, think of your kingdom please.”

A plea to her royal self. Toadette was clever, always had been. For a second, Peach was tempted to relent for the good of her kingdom. Could she continue like this? But she shook her head.

“No. Absolutely not.”

Imagine the thought? Her, going to Mario about her nightmares, expecting him to help? He already did so much for her; he placed his life on the line time after time for her and knowing him, he would worry sick until she was comfortable. He deserved rest after all he did for her. She didn’t want to be more of a burden on him than she already was with her knack for getting kidnapped regularly. Peach had already worried her friends enough that they were staging an unwanted intervention. She couldn’t stop their concern, but she could stop her weaknesses from affecting Mario. 

She looked at Daisy and Toadette and shook her head once more. “No, I will not tell Mario. And that’s the end of that.” She headed towards the door. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to get dressed.” 

Peach curtsied slightly. “Please excuse me, Princess Daisy. We have dignitaries from Delfino today and I really should prepare for the day. Do make yourself at home. I will have Toadine make up your room and Toadsworth will be happy to attend to any need you have.”

She stumbled on her feet and caught herself on the edge of the door, waving off a guard’s hand who tried to steady her. She smiled, though it felt forced. “I’m fine. Thank you. I’m truly fine.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted her friends, their faces a mix of frustration and worry. Peach pressed her eyelids closed. “I’m sorry for worrying you both so.”

She left them both in the library without another word. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_ Peach was afraid of falling. The castle swayed unsteadily among the chains that held it high above the earth, suspended from Bowser’s airships, and with each movement, she swore she’d soon join the clouds swirling on the sphere she called home far below.  _

_ “Mario!” she called out with a blend of fear and hope, squeezing the luma in her arms. She had spotted him leaping through the attack on Toad Town to reach her castle. To reach her. _

_ By the edge of the platform her castle now sat on, she saw Mario stand to his feet shakily. They met eyes, his never straying from hers as he lifted his hand. They were so close.  _

_ But Kamek flew between him and the castle. In a bright burst of red light, the platform’s edge exploded, sending Mario out into the inky unknown, a red star in a sea of asteroids. The luma stayed in her hands as she screamed his name, watching as he fell, crashing against the debris of the castle before plummeting to the earth miles below. _

Peach startled as her fingers crashed against something with a sharp pain. She pulled her hand back and placed her aching middle and pointer finger in her mouth, taking stock of where she was. She was seated at her desk, papers of upcoming meetings scattered around her like a whirlwind had made its way through the room. When she looked in front of her, she could see a scratch on the castle wall where her fingers had hit when she had reached her arm out, as if hoping to somehow reach the falling man. But there had been nothing to catch.

She had fallen asleep. Of  _ course,  _ she had fallen asleep. Just what she needed.

She pulled her fingers out of her mouth, pouting at the bruise forming and the chip in her manicure. 

Peach didn’t understand why she was dreaming of her kidnapping in space. In reality, Mario had not created a human-shaped crater on the earth like her nightmare had shown; Peach had  _ saved  _ Mario, sending the luma out after him, propelled by a wish to save him. Her hope had kept him safe she liked to believe. If anything, it was a testament to their bond.

_ So why won’t you show me all the good,  _ Peach thought, pressing her fingers to the bridge of her nose tightly, clenching her eyes.

But even if awake, she could still see the flash of red from Kamek’s attack behind her eyelids and hear the rush of wind as Mario hurtled towards an asteroid at break-neck speeds.

Peach jumped to her feet, the world spinning. The dizzy spells were lasting longer every day and she felt a wave of weakness nearly sending her back to her chair. No. Peach stumbled to turn all the lights of her room on, before patting her cheeks to wake herself up. With Daisy’s new presence as of the day before, Peach knew she had to be on her toes, to be on her best behavior. There was no room for error. No room for nightmares. She quickly wiped the tears that had started falling down her face again. 

None of that. She’d pull through no matter the cost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peach Pit is what Bowser calls Peach in SolareSuper's fanfiction and I liked the idea of Daisy sometimes calling Peach by that name to piss her off. Peach is getting more and more wound-up and stubborn the less sleep she gets. She may have a pure heart (very Kingdom-Hearts-y), but she still gets angry and isn't perfect. 
> 
> Anyway, one more chapter to go! Guess who'll be stopping by in the next chapter? I hope the pay-off is worth it <3


	3. A Much Needed Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time for lies is over.

Peach fumbled with the buttons on the back of her dress, her fingers slipping each time she tried to fasten the ones between her shoulder blades or higher. She had nodded off while preparing for the meeting, spilling hot tea on her standard pink dress. Any other day, her magic would have kept it immaculate, but this time, her magic had puttered away, the stain seeming darker than before. The dress now lay on a pile on the floor. Just another mistake she couldn’t afford to make.

Instead of organizing her notes like a good royal, Peach was struggling with the blasted buttons on her alternate, yet nearly identical dress. She was running late already.

Peach heard the door to her room open. No doubt Toadette coming to let her know her meeting was waiting. 

“I’m aware,” Peach said in a wary voice, “I’m going to be late to the Festivus Festivities committee. So please, for once, Toadette, please don’t say anything and help me get these buttons right?”

A hesitation and Peach scrunched her eyes. She was being too brusque with her friends. She didn’t want to be like this.

“Please,” she added softly.

Footsteps approached from behind her and she felt a gentle pair of hands slowly close the remaining buttons. The fingers tickled, tempting her to close her eyes, but soon, the last button sat clasped at top of her spine.

“Thank you….”

She turned to face Toadette, but her words of gratitude died on her lips, her face paling.

In front of her was not Toadette with her spotted, pink head, but a familiar handsome man, blue eyes furrowed with concern, moustache not hiding his frown. His cheeks had the slightest hint of red.

“Mario,” Peach whispered.

And for a second, behind him littering the floor of her room, she saw the many incarnations of him in her nightmares, none pleasant. She closed her eyes and feeling her knees going weak

“Princess,” Mario said, reaching forward to steady her.

She was starting to worry him already. She had to open her eyes. She did so cautiously. The visions of his deceased selves were gone, only leaving the true hero of the kingdom. She reached over and gave his hand a squeeze before pulling away.

“I’m alright,” she laced as much cheeriness as she could into her voice, walking to her desk, watching her feet as she moved to avoid tripping. “I just need some water.”

Mario gave her a half-lidded look of disbelief, crossing his arms and tilting his head.

Oh, so he was here giving her attitude like her friends too? Peach pursed her lips, but quickly hid the gesture and smiled sweetly at him. “What brings you here today? I do think Toadsworth mentioned a leak in one of the fountains.”

“Daisy and Toadette called,” Mario finally said. He waited.

Peach felt ice in her chest and gripped at the desk to steady herself. That didn’t mean what she thought it could. It didn’t have to. 

“O-oh? Well yes, Daisy paid us an unexpected visit. I’m sure she would love to say hello. Toadette is working around the castle, but I think she could use a day off too. When you see her, please tell her I can handle today’s duties.”

She walked out the entryway that led from her desk and wardrobe to the main portion of her bedroom.

“Peach,” Mario said, gently but sternly, following her. He positioned himself closer to the fireplace, between her and the doorway leading to the castle. “I’m not here to see them. I’m here to see you.”

Peach swallowed with difficulty, straightening the royal gem on her dress. “Well, I appreciate you coming, but I have a meeting with the Festivus Festivities Committee for the rest of the day.”

Mario shook his head. “No you don’t.”

Peach paused, frowning. “Yes I do.”

Mario motioned for her to sit down, “No, you don’t.”

“Yes, it was a last minute meeting. Toadette told me-”

Mario raised an eyebrow and Peach’s eyes widened putting together the pieces. Her shoulders slumped.

“There is no Festivus Festivities Committee.”

Mario stood up and guided her towards the bed to sit down. Instead, she sat down on the stairs leading up to the bed, hoping Mario wouldn’t notice her avoidance. He looked down at her for a second before shaking his head once more and sitting beside her.

“You would have figured that out much sooner on any other day.” Mario prodded. “You’ve always been the bright one.” He tapped his head with a single finger. 

Peach looked at the door ashamed, wishing she could run out. Mario was right; usually she would have realized the deceit much sooner. She tugged at her white glove absentmindedly. “Y-yes, well, I’ve been preoccupied. Royal duties and such.” 

Mario hummed under his breath. “You know, that’s what I thought at first. Usually you’d be the first asking me if it was puttanesca Thursday,” Mario chuckled.

Peach put her hands to her mouth, concealing a gasp. “Oh no. Did I miss it?”

Mario gave her an apologetic look, removing his hat before nodding.

Peach groaned and buried her face in her hands.

“I thought you got caught up being a princess and signing official documents.” Mario frowned. “But after Saturday, I decided to check why you’d been so quiet.”

Peach frowned. “But Daisy and Toadette reached out to you first.”

“Yeah.”

Peach looked down, laughing softly. “I’m fine. Really.”

“You’re not a good liar, Peach.”

She huffed. “Don’t you start too. They worry too much about me. You shouldn’t follow their example.”

A soft hand touched her cheek. Mario had removed his glove at some point during the conversation and his calloused hand on her skin stopped the words at her throat. His thumb traced the dimple on her cheek, the area under her eye, and Peach closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. It was warm.

_ The fire from Bowser’s attack lit up everything. She could feel the heat coming off Mario’s hand as he took the attack. _

Peach’s eyes shot open and she recoiled away from his hand, stumbling back. Her hand went around her gem, clutching at it like a lifeline.

Mario’s eyes widened and his Adam’s apple bobbed with a gulp. He looked absolutely devastated. 

_ What am I doing?  _ Peach thought, tears collecting at the edges of her eyes. She couldn’t keep doing this.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said, hiccuping with tears. “It’s not you.” She scooched back closer to him and grabbed his hand, holding it to her cheek. 

The time for lies was done. She was so tired of pretending especially if this was only going to hurt him more. She pressed his hand against her again, trying not to imagine all the horrible images that threatened to emerge.

Mario remained quiet, stiff against her; when Peach met his eyes, she could see his worry, his fear of making one wrong move. She would have to be the one to break the silence, to open up, as someone had once advised her to do. 

“I-I’ve been having nightmares.”

Mario still remained silent, but alert. He didn’t look fazed. Of course, Toadette and Daisy had probably told him that much. 

“About you,” she finally added.

When his arm twitched to move his hand away from her, she held it close. She’d have to be clearer after her earlier reaction.

“About you getting hurt,” Peach clarified.

Mario’s eyebrows furrowed. “But you know me; I always bounce back.”

Peach swallowed with difficulty, bringing his hand down away from her cheek and holding it between both her hands on her lap.

“You almost haven’t,” Peach said, already feeling the memories taking hold.

“Nothing would stop me from saving you,  _ amore. _ ”

_ Mario reaching for her in the vast expanse of space. Mario protecting her from the fire. Being thrown off Bowser’s ship, seeing the pieces of his famous hat scattered to the wind. Facing enemy after enemy of unknown power to rescue her. _

“That’s what scares me,” Peach’s voice broke and her vision got blurry. Through her tears, she could see Mario’s look of surprise. “W-what if one day-what if one day I get you killed.” She brought her head down to her lap, her forehead touching Mario’s hand still laying there. “What if one day you don’t come back or I can’t help you either or-”

A strong arm reached around her shoulders and pulled her close. ”That would never happen,” he said defiantly. “Never.” 

It only made Peach sob harder.

“I-I’m so tired, Mario. Every night, I see you hurt or gone or dead and I’m scared. I’m so scared to wake up and to be alone or for it to be true.”

Peach cried and cried, leaning into the soft circles that Mario rubbed onto her back, silently. 

The minutes passed on and finally, Peach felt her sobs slow. Her head spun as she calmed down, sniffling. She finally raised her face, covering her nose.

“I’m sorry.” Her voice sounded all wrong, sore and ragged.

Mario smiled sadly and stood up, heading into her wardrobe before returning and kneeling beside her with a tissue in hand.

She gave him a half-hearted smile and took the tissue. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as she cleared her nose loudly and messily, but Mario, ever the gentleman, didn’t laugh. Instead, he wrapped his arm around her again.

“Since when?” Mario asked after Peach stopped blowing her nose. “When was the last time you didn’t have a nightmare?”

Peach looked down. “I’m not sure….over a week? Ten days?”

Mario squeezed her shoulders with comfort. “And when was the last time you slept?”

Peach giggled pathetically. “Over a week.”

“You didn’t tell me,” Mario said. He could’ve easily made it an accusation, but he didn’t. Instead, it was a simple statement, one with a bit of hurt, but no malice. 

Peach tugged at her gloves nervously. “No….I didn’t want you to worry. You do so much already and I couldn’t….I couldn’t bother you.”

Mario sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Peach, we’re…friends,” Mario finally said. His cheeks were tinged with red, but he squeezed her shoulder again, the deeper meaning of the word evident. “How am I supposed to help if you don’t tell me?”

Peach sighed. “I just wanted to handle it myself. You already help so much,” Peach repeated.

Mario pressed his lips to the top of her head, his moustache tickling her skin and sending a pleasant shiver down Peach’s spine. She relaxed against him, her eyelids starting to close.

“Friendship isn’t about who does what more,” Mario said. “I want to be there for you any time. And you help me too. Your wishes keep me safe and that time you came to save all of us from the castle? You’re a hero, Princess.”

She had done that once, hadn’t she? Maybe. Her thoughts felt foggy. 

“You should sleep,” Mario said.

Immediately her eyes opened again and her voice trembled, the fog clearing slightly. “N-no. I have things to do and-”

“The Festivus Festivities?” Mario teased once, but then his look softened, “Peach, you need to rest. You look more tired than the midnight shifters at the diners at dawn.” He stopped. “Makes sense though. You’ve pulled a few of those in a row too now.”

“Splendid. You and Daisy really know how to make a girl feel beautiful,” Peach said sarcastically with a big yawn.

Mario chuckled and he slipped one hand behind her back and another under her knees, picking her up. 

“You  _ are  _ beautiful.”

He headed up the steps to the landing with her bed. Peach was too tired to protest, leaning her head under Mario’s chin, savoring in the warmth. She could hear his heart beating under his shirt. A steady rhythm, nothing like the horrifying silence from her bean-bean nightmare. She lifted a hand and gripped his shirt tightly over his heart, as if she could hold it. Protect it.

Mario reached her bed and cursed under his breath in Italian. He bent down.

“Hold tight” he asked.

Peach was having a harder time keeping her eyes open but she reluctantly let go of Mario’s shirt and wrapped her arms around his neck. He let go of her back to pull the sheets down quickly before supporting her back again.

“Okay, here we go,” he said softly, placing her in bed.

The cushions were more comfortable than she remembered. More comfortable than she wanted them to be. She wanted to tell Mario that she needed to get up, but the only thing that came out was a weak, “Mario.”

Mario brought the covers back up, tucking her in. “Sleep.”

“The nightmares-”

“I’ll fight them off,” Mario said, raising his fists as if preparing to battle the foes. “I promise.” 

Peach grabbed his fist. “Don’t let- don’t…Please.” She couldn’t get the words out. The fear of waking up in the dark room. Of hearing the silence. Of finding Mario gone. She gave up on her previous thought. “Be here.”

Mario adjusted her pillow. “I am here.”

Peach shook her head. “Be here when...when I wake up.” She pulled on his hand so he was leaning more on the bed. “Please.”

Peach swore Mario’s face flushed, but after a second, he nodded and went around to the other side of the bed. Gingerly, he sat down on top of the covers beside Peach. 

“I’ll be here.”

Peach curled up closer to him, burying her face against his side. Her body felt heavier with every passing second. She could barely hear her voice, the room darkening again. “You swear it?”

She couldn’t see anymore. Everything was so inviting. A hand went through her hair.

“I swear.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Peach opened her eyes, the latest nightmare attack still vivid in her mind, it was nearly midnight. She shivered and an arm around her shoulders she hadn’t noticed tightened. She blinked, eyes bleary with sleep. There was a familiar figure beside her, snores filling the room. Still, even while fast asleep, Mario’s arm stayed around Peach, holding her close to his side.

He had stayed. He was  _ there _ . 

The blankets were warm, the stars were out and Mario was there. Suddenly, the nightmare seemed far away, a false memory to be washed away in the morning light or by the stars in the sky. Peach draped an arm around Mario’s middle, burying her face against him again, enjoying the way Mario muttered her name in his sleep as he pulled her closer. And then she closed her eyes again.

The nightmares did not return. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are! I really did have fun writing this. I'll admit I was nervous about writing Mario since I don't feel I do him justice, but I still had fun writing them. I hope you enjoyed the story <3 Leave some kudos and comments if you did. I love hearing back.


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